Abstract: Method for controlling a vehicular system based on the presence of an object in an environment around a vehicle with one goals being to prevent collisions between the vehicle and any objects. Infrared light is emitted from the vehicle into a portion of the environment around the vehicle and received by a sensor on the vehicle. Distance between the vehicle and an object from which the infrared light is reflected is determined based on the emission of the infrared light and reception of the infrared light. The presence of and an identification of the object from which light is reflected is/are determined based at least in part on the received infrared light. The vehicular system is controlled or adjusted based on the determination of the presence of an object in the environment around the vehicle and the identification of the object and the distance between the object and the vehicle.

Abstract: Vehicle including a crash sensor system arranged to determine a crash condition involving the vehicle which might cause injury to a vehicular occupant, at least one module each including an occupant protection device actuatable upon determination of a crash condition in order to protect the occupant from injury during the crash, and a vehicle bus to which the crash sensor system and module(s) are connected. The crash sensor system generates a signal upon a determination of a crash condition and directs the signal over the bus. Each module is arranged to actuate its occupant protection device in consideration of the signal. The signal might be directly sent to the module from the crash sensor system or sent to a control module which processes it and in turn generates a signal to be directed via the bus to the module(s).

Abstract: Land-based vehicle including an arrangement for monitoring objects in or about a vehicle includes a source from which modulated illumination is emitted into an area in or about the vehicle, a receiver arranged to receive illumination reflected from an object in the path of the modulated illumination, and circuitry coupled to the receiver and the source and arranged to compare a phase of the modulated illumination with a phase of the reflected radiation at a common frequency to determine whether there is a phase difference between the modulated illumination and the reflected illumination. The phase difference is a measure of a property of the object, such as the distance between the object and the source/receiver, which can be co-located. Otherwise, if the source and receiver and not co-located or substantially co-located, the distance is a measure of the distance of travel of the illumination.

Abstract: Inflatable airbag for a vehicle which is deployed in the event of an accident involving the vehicle to provide protection for an occupant of the vehicle includes a plurality of ribbons coupled together to define an enclosed, fluid-retaining space and a layer of film laminated on at least one of an outer side of the woven ribbons and an inner side of the ribbons. The ribbons may be made from polypropylene, polyethylene, polyester or polyamide and the layers of film may be made from polyethylene, polyurethane, polyester or polyamide. The ribbons and layers of film may be made of the same or different materials.

Abstract: Roadside barrier including barrier sections coupled to one another, each having a horizontal portion, a vertical portion extending upward from the horizontal portion and a front plate coupled to the vertical portion and adapted to receive an impact from a vehicle. The vertical portion extends upward from a middle region of the horizontal portion to form a T-shaped structure. A vehicle impacting the front plate is situated on a front part of the horizontal portion thereby preventing the vehicle from tipping over. A mass, such as gravel or sand, is placed on a rear part of the horizontal portion, either loose or in a barrel or box. The barrier section is optionally designed to provide an increased drag once moved from its installation position, for example, by forming downwardly-extending protrusions on a lower surface of the horizontal portion which are adapted to penetrate the ground below the barrier section.

Abstract: Control system for controlling at least one occupant protection system of a vehicle includes a plurality of preferably electronic sensor systems mounted at different locations on the vehicle, each sensor system providing a measurement related to a state thereof system or a measurement related to a state of the mounting location. A processor is coupled to the sensor systems and diagnoses the state of the vehicle based on the measurements of the sensor systems. The processor controls each occupant protection system based at least in part on the diagnosed state of the vehicle. The occupant protection system may be a deployable airbag whose deployment is controlled by the processor based on the diagnosed state of the vehicle. The diagnosis of the state of the vehicle may be a diagnosis of the overall condition of the vehicle with respect to its stability or a diagnosis of the vehicle itself.

Abstract: Sensor system for sensing pressure applied to a seat by an occupant of the seat and for controlling deployment of an airbag which includes a bladder defining a chamber and which is adapted to be arranged in a seat portion of the seat, and a pressure sensor for measuring a pressure in the chamber. Deployment of the airbag is controlled based at least in part on the pressure in the chamber measured by the pressure sensor. A control module may be provided to control deployment of the airbag so that when the pressure sensor generates a signal based on the measured pressure in the chamber and provides the signal to the control module, the control module controls deployment of the airbag based on the signal.

Abstract: RFID and sensor assemblies for vehicles in which an interrogator transmits RF signals and receives responsive RF signals from the RFID assemblies. Each RFID assembly includes a sensor and an RFID switch which receives an RF signal from the interrogator and upon receipt of a signal containing its identification, enables transmission of a signal from the sensor from which a property being monitored by the sensor is determinable. The sensor may be a SAW sensor which modifies a received wave as a function of the property being monitored by the sensor and thus transmits a modified wave. Each RFID assembly may include an antenna arranged to receive signals from and provide signals to the interrogator. The RFID switch is arranged to connect or disconnect the sensor from a circuit dependent on whether the antenna receives a particular signal associated with the RFID assembly.

Abstract: System and method for determining the location of the eyes of a vehicular occupant includes one or more wave-receiving transducers each arranged to receive waves from the passenger compartment generated or modified by the occupant, and a processor coupled to the transducer(s) for analyzing the waves and determining the location of the occupant's eyes relative to the passenger compartment based on the analysis of the received waves. The processor may include a trained pattern recognition algorithm which has been trained using data about known locations of the eyes of occupants in different positions and waves received from the passenger compartment when the occupants in the different positions are present. The location of the eyes of the occupant relative to the passenger compartment may be used to control one or more components, each of which has a variable or adjustable operation based on the location of the eyes of the occupant.

Abstract: Vehicle including an anticipatory sensor system for determining that an impact involving the vehicle is about to occur unless a corrective action is taken based on data obtained prior to the impact and determining whether the potential impact requires activation of a reactive system which controls operation of the vehicle. The anticipatory sensor system includes a receiver for receiving waves or energy and a pattern recognition system for analyzing the received waves or energy, or data representative thereof, to determine that an impact is about to occur if corrective action is not taken and whether the potential impact requires activation of the reactive system. The pattern recognition system ascertains the identity of an object from which the waves or energy have been emitted, reflected or generated, so that the determination whether the impact requires activation of the reactive system is based on identification of the object.

Abstract: Vehicle seat including a seat portion including a container having an interior containing fluid and a mechanism, material or structure therein to restrict flow of the fluid from one portion of the interior to another portion of the interior, a back portion arranged at an angle to the seat portion, and a measurement system arranged to obtain an indication of the weight of the occupant when present on the seat portion based at least in part on the pressure of the fluid in the container. The weight of the occupant can be used to control components in the vehicle or the seat itself.

Abstract: RFID and sensor assemblies for vehicles in which an interrogator transmits RF signals and receives responsive RF signals from the RFID assemblies. Each RFID assembly includes a sensor and an RFID switch which receives an RF signal from the interrogator and upon receipt of a signal containing its identification, enables transmission of a signal from the sensor from which a property being monitored by the sensor is determinable. The sensor may be a SAW sensor which modifies a received wave as a function of the property being monitored by the sensor and thus transmits a modified wave. Each RFID assembly may include an antenna arranged to receive signals from and provide signals to the interrogator. The RFID switch is arranged to connect or disconnect the sensor from a circuit dependent on whether the antenna receives a particular signal associated with the RFID assembly.

Abstract: An airbag deployment system including at least one module housing, at least one deployable airbag associated with each housing, an inflator associated with each housing for inflating the airbag(s) to deploy into the passenger compartment, an airbag inflation determination unit for determining that deployment of the airbag(s) is/are desired, and respective electronic control units arranged within or proximate each housing and coupled to a respective inflator and the airbag inflation determination unit for initiating the inflator to inflate the airbag(s) in the respective housing upon receiving a signal from the airbag inflation determination unit. The control units include a power supply for enabling initiation of the inflator.

Abstract: System for measuring the weight of an occupant in a vehicle seat having a bottom portion and a back portion at an angle to the bottom portion and for controlling a safety restraint system responsive thereto which includes a fluid-containing bladder mounted within or beneath an upper surface of the bottom portion of the seat and supported by a base of the seat, a pressure sensor operatively coupled to the bladder for generating a signal responsive to pressure of the fluid within the bladder caused by pressure applied to the upper surface of the seat, and a processor coupled to the pressure sensor for determining the weight of the occupant from the signal and generating a control signal for controlling the safety restraint system responsive to the weight determination. The weight of the occupant can be used to control components in the vehicle or the seat itself.

Abstract: Arrangement and method for obtaining information about objects in an environment in or around a vehicle includes one or more optical imagers for obtaining images of the environment and a processor coupled to the imager(s) for obtaining information about an object in one or more images obtained by the imager(s). The processor is arranged to process the obtained images to determine edges of objects in the images and input data about the edges into a trained pattern recognition algorithm which has been trained to provide information about the object as output. The pattern recognition algorithm may include a neural network or variation thereof. The information about the object may be used to control a vehicular component such as an airbag or light filter.

Abstract: Security system and method for monitoring vehicular compartments includes at least one optical image receiving unit arranged to receive optical images of a compartment of the vehicle, e.g., from at least a portion of the face of a person located at a driver's station in a passenger compartment of the vehicle, and produce image signals therefrom and a processor including an electronic facial-recognition system coupled to the optical image receiving unit(s) responsive to the image signals and controllably coupled to the enabling system, and an electronic storage device coupled to the facial-recognition system to store a set of image signals. The facial-recognition system enables ignition of the vehicle system only if signals representative of select characteristics of a scanned face of the person derived from the image signals produced by the optical image receiving unit(s) match a member of a set of signals stored in the electronic storage device.

Abstract: Adjustment system for adjusting a vehicular component based on occupancy of a seat includes a support structure arranged underneath the seat to movably support the seat on a substrate in the vehicle, the support structure being structured and arranged to transfer a force exerted by the occupant on the support structure to the substrate, a sensor system arranged underneath the seat, optionally in connection with the support structure, for providing a variable output as a function of weight of the occupant, an adjustment system arranged in connection with the component for adjusting the component, and a processor for receiving outputs from the sensor system and directing the adjustment system to adjust the component based thereon. An object recognition or identification system or other morphological characteristic determining system may be used to determine that the occupant is one which requires adjustment of the component.

Abstract: Airbag inflator system includes an inflatable airbag, a flexible housing, and a gas generating system for generating gas which is directed from the housing to the interior of the airbag. The housing may be made by an extrusion process to provide it with its flexible cl of plastic. An aspirating structure or nozzle may be arranged between the gas generating system and an interior of the airbag, which nozzle is varied as a function of temperature. The aspirating structure or arrangement enables air from the passenger compartment of the vehicle to mix with the generated gas prior to being directed into the airbag.

Abstract: Method for vehicle component control based on occupancy of the vehicle includes determining at least one morphological characteristic of the occupant, classifying the occupant based only on the determined morphological characteristic(s) to provide an identification of the occupant, and adjusting a component of the vehicle based on the identification. Morphological characteristics include weight of the occupant and height of the occupant. The morphological characteristics can be determined using only sensors arranged in a seat on which the occupant is seated. Classification of the occupant can include generating a table of classifications for different determinations of the morphological characteristic, either individually or combinations of two or more morphological characteristics, so that an identification is provided based on each determination, detection or measurement of the morphological characteristic(s).

Abstract: Movable vehicular assembly including an electricity generating system includes a movable substrate such as a tire, a power generating system arranged on, in connection with or within the substrate and to generate energy from movement of the substrate, and a circuit coupled to the power generating system and including an energy storage device. The circuit is operable in an active mode when the substrate moves and the power generating system generates energy or the energy storage device contains energy for powering the circuit and in a passive mode when the substrate is not moving and the energy storage device does not contain sufficient energy to power the circuit. The circuit receives power to operate in the passive mode from a signal received by the circuit. Components which may be part of the circuit include a surface-acoustic-wave device and a radio-frequency identification device.